The word ‘leadership’ is about an act of guidance and providing direction to others. Church leadership isn’t any different; but along with providing guidance, it’s also about how the leader behaves, communicates, and manages. Here servant leadership is defined as leadership that focuses on others, with the desire to serve first and foremost.

Take some time to see who our church leadership team is. If you would like to get in contact with us, you can do so by using the dedicated ‘Contact Us’ page.

Church leadership is about serving others in accordance with Christ’s interests so that they can see and accomplish God’s purpose for them in the world. A church leader needs qualities that influence and morally support the congregation, the volunteers, and others within the community. Such qualities include moral trustworthiness, social aptitude, empathy, pastoral care, and more which will allow him to serve Christ and his church.

The Bible refers to a leader as one above reproach, like the husband of one wife. He must be sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity, keeping his children submissive. The reason is that if someone cannot manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?

The traits which our church leaders seek to exemplify include aiming to serve God, listening well, showing empathy, being self-aware, stewarding others and being committed to people with the aim of growing the church to further the gospel. At Yateley Baptist Church, our leaders seek to exemplify these qualities which help us to grow and serve those around us.

Christ is the Head of the Church, but exercises his authority indirectly through his word, which he commits to those he calls to minister it in his church. The original ministers were the Apostles (Matt 16:19) who have been superseded by elders, who proclaim and apply the teaching in local churches (Eph 4:11).

The meaning of the word ‘Deacon’ (servant) shows us that, like elders, they are called to serve the church. However, they perform their service in different ways and their authority is limited to the areas in which they perform their duties.

All who believe in their hearts and confess with their mouths Jesus Christ as Son of God and Saviour belong to his body, the ‘universal’ Church (Matt 16:15-16 & Rom 10:9-10). On earth believers in a given locality gather together as Christ's body in that area, the ‘local’ church. They commit themselves to the Lord, to his truth and to each other for the purposes of worship, ministry and witness in the locality.

While membership does not make anyone more of a Christian, it is desirable for the orderly running of the local church. A church must know who is under its ministry, care and discipline, whom it can count on to support its activities and contribute to its cost, and who will participate in the decision making. The best way to achieve these aims is to have a roll of members who have freely committed themselves to one another.